Gauntlet

This article covers the antelope species. The large oak buck , a species of insect, is also known as the gauntlet . The forward chamois also stands for a male chamois .

Gauntlet
Gauntlet ( Oryx gazella ), male in Kalkheuwel Bore Hole
Systematics
without rank: Forehead weapon bearer (Pecora) Family : Horned Bearers (Bovidae) Subfamily : Antilopinae Tribe : Horse rams (Hippotragini) Genre : Oryx antelopes ( Oryx ) Type : Gauntlet
Scientific name
Oryx Gazella
( Linnaeus , 1758)

Coat of arms of Namibia

The billy goat ( Oryx gazella ) is a large antelope from the genus of the oryx antelopes native to southern Africa . The locally common name of the species, in addition to oryx , is Gemsbock in German and in other languages (rarely English also Gemsbuck ), in Afrikaans , Gemsbok , coming from German , and in German-speaking countries also Gämsbock . The name is derived from the German chamois (chamois) due to the facial drawing. Another official German name is South African Gourmand .

In Otjiherero the animal is called Onduno , in Setswana Kukama , in Khoekhoegowab ǀGaeb and in Oshivambo Osino . The term Passan is no longer in use.

features

With a shoulder height of 1.20 meters, the billy goat is the largest species of the oryx. Both sexes have a strong neck, long, sharp horns (up to 1.5 meters) and a tail reminiscent of a ponytail. Except for the underside, the billy goat is brownish-pale, with conspicuous black markings on the flanks and spots on the thighs, the throat and the club. The black and white face mask is particularly noticeable.

distribution

Gourmets are native to dry areas ( deserts , semi-deserts ), but can also be found in the savannah . The distribution area mainly includes Namibia and Botswana as well as northern South Africa and western Zimbabwe . The stocks in East Africa are now listed as East African Oryx as a separate species.

The population in Namibia alone (as of 2004) is estimated at around 388,000 animals.

behavior

Grass is preferred as food , but they also eat non-toxic succulents , dig up roots and eat wild fruits. In times of drought, they consume up to 30% of leaves from shrubs and trees and, surprisingly, also the highly toxic, water-containing and nutrient-rich milkweed family Euphorbia damarana , which then covers up to 25% of their nutritional needs . Possible negative effects on the health of the oryx are so far unknown. Although the gourmets drink water, they are independent of surface water .

The females live in groups of up to 40 animals. In contrast, the males are loners. They defend a territory and defend all females that are currently in their territory. Fights between rival males take place via ritualized gestures and almost never in a serious way, as the antelopes could otherwise seriously injure themselves with their pointed horns.

Gourmets and people

The gauntlet stands as a synonym for tenacity and lack of needs and is therefore also the heraldic animal of Namibia and can also be found in the coats of arms of various other regions in southern Africa, such as the province of North Cape . The locals have always hunted these antelopes. They processed their skin into leather and used the horns as spearheads . Compared to other oryx antelopes such as the Arabian oryx , the gauntlet is still common; Estimates assume 373,000 animals. A human-introduced semi-wild population lives in southern New Mexico .

annotation

1. ↑ Note: This article contains characters from the alphabet of the Khoisan languages spoken in southern Africa . The display contains characters of the click letters ǀ , ǁ , ǂ and ǃ . For more information on the pronunciation of long or nasal vowels or certain clicks , see e.g. B. under Khoekhoegowab .

literature

• Don E. Wilson , DeeAnn M. Reeder (Eds.): Mammal Species of the World . A taxonomic and geographic Reference. 2 volumes. 3. Edition. The Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore MD 2005, ISBN 0-8018-8221-4 .

Web links

Commons : Grainborn ( Oryx gazella )  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Information on Oryx gazella , IUCN (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Top 10 Trophies. Namibia Professional Hunting Association. Retrieved June 17, 2019
2. ↑ Gemsbok. Canadian Museum of Nature. Retrieved June 17, 2019
3. ↑ gems · bok. The American Heritage Dictionary. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
4. ↑ Definition of 'gemsbok'. Collins Dictionary. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
5. ↑ Oryx gazella. Namibia Biodiversity Database. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
6. ↑ Oryx gazella. Namibia Biodiversity Database. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
7. ↑ DEA RESEARCH DISCUSSION PAPER, Number 79, June 2009, Wildlife resource accounts for Namibia ( Memento from February 1, 2016 in the web archive archive.today )
8. ↑ David Lehmann, John Kazgeba Elijah Mfune, Erick Gewers, Johann Cloete, Conrad Brain, Christian Claus Voigt: Dietary Plasticity of Generalist and Specialist Ungulates in the Namibian Desert: A Stable Isotopes Approach. PLoS ONE 8 (8): e72190. doi: 10.1371 / journal.pone.0072190